Extension In Your Neighborhood North Central
CAMDEN COUNTY
DURHAM COUNTY
Northeast
West
South Central
Southeast
Partnering with federal, state and local governments, as well as N.C. A&T State University, we operate as part of an educational network called N.C. Cooperative Extension. Local Extension centers staff 758 professionalsI , while 549 employees work at campus and other facilities supporting our mission. We celebrate our "Hometown Heroes" – Extension experts from five districts statewide – who change lives and create brighter futures in their communities.
Hometown Hero: Austin Brown
Hometown Hero: Gaebryl Vives
As County Extension Director, Austin Brown has been instrumental in working with local leaders to build a new Extension center for Camden County. As field crops agent, he helps county farmers thrive. He provides in-depth crop data, including monitoring harmful pests. He works closely with the Northeast Ag Expo team to conduct field trials for corn, soybean and wheat varieties.
Gaebryl Vives worked with Extension while a student at Durham Tech, and became a Family and Consumer Sciences program assistant after graduating. While working on his bachelor’s degree at NC State, Vives manages volunteers for Durham Tech’s Harvest Pantry, which grew 2,229 pounds of produce for food insecure community members in 2023.
NORTHEAST DISTRICT > Counties: 22 > Households: 735,855 > Food Insecurity: 10% > Farms: 5,410 > Ag Cash Receipts: $2.2B > Extension Employees: 164 > Educational Programs: 5,769
NORTH CENTRAL DISTRICT > Counties: 20 > Households: 1,003,297 > Food Insecurity: 11.5% > Farms: 14,643 > Ag Cash Receipts: $1.4B > Extension Employees: 171 > Educational Programs: 4,540
Helping Hands Make Light Work Volunteers also enhanced Extension’s impact in 2023, contributing more than $13 millionII of time supporting our programs.
I Includes 628 NC State-funded Extension employees and 130 county-funded personnel II Based on estimated value ($31.80/hr.) of volunteer services in 2023 (independentsector.org)
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